The Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology Dr Shane Reti recently commented that New Zealand has a “has a bit of catchup to do” on Artificial Intelligence (AI). Te Tumu o Toi | Chief Executive of the Toi Mai Workforce Development Council, Dr Claire Robinson is worried this kind of attitude is symptomatic of a government happy to sit on the sidelines while it watches other competitor economies building the future we should be leading.

Last week the Government released New Zealand’s Strategy for Artificial Intelligence: Investing with Confidence document with a goal of accelerating adoption and use of AI in the private sector.

Responding to criticism about the lack of overall ambition in the Government’s strategy document, Dr Reti said, “New Zealand governments had been doing a lot of thinking around AI over the years.”

Dr Robinson says the time for thinking is well and truly over. New Zealand urgently needs a targeted AI Skills Strategy with targets for AI skills adoption.

Toi Mai welcomes the Government’s desire to improve adoption and use of AI. However, while the strategy mentions “the Lack of AI skills” as one barrier to adoption of AI, the actions proposed – with high level examples of investment in STEM education and funding for the Youth Guarantees Scheme – are already existing initiatives and are not specifically targeted at AI adoption across the workforce.

At the same time, other advanced economies have already implemented comprehensive plans with real targets and investment:

• Singapore’s Smart Nation 2.0 commits to tripling AI practitioners to 15,000 over five years and investing SGD $20 million in AI training, and Singapore’s SkillsFuture provides targeted assistance those over 40 training for new careers.
• Denmark’s AI Competence Pact aims to upskill 1 million citizens by 2028 as a public–private partnership, with workers embedded in industry, through its existing education network.
• Australia has funded 1 million free AI micro-credentials via TAFE providers.

These nations are proactively preparing their workforces for AI-driven productivity gains and job transitions, while New Zealand risks falling behind without similar strategic commitment.

While education providers, particularly universities, have developed Masters-level AI skills programmes, or included machine learning components in bachelor’s degrees, these are aimed at those with existing computer science backgrounds and/or require long periods of specific study.

It is the wider workforce – much of which is aging – that needs upskilling in how to use the tools of AI in their workplace now. This is a skill needed across every sector of the economy.

Toi Mai asks the Government to urgently develop a target-driven approach and invest in short-course training, utilising New Zealand’s network of private training enterprises, wānanga, institutes of technology and polytechnics, and universities. Open Polytechnic’s Introduction to Generative AI micro-credential is an example of an introductory initiative that should be scaled. Unlike lengthy bachelor and master degree programmes, these short courses would offer micro-credentials (8–12 week modules) targeting immediate productivity gains.

Toi Mai acknowledges there have been steps in developing capability within the public sector, particularly at senior level. However, if New Zealand is to increase its productivity and adopt meaningful AI use in the workplace, a more comprehensive, targeted-oriented strategy, backed with real investment, is needed.